The present invention relates to a flexible and compact motor control module based on the Controller Area Network (CAN). More specifically, the present invention relates to a motor control module which is based on the ISO11898 standard Controller Area Network (CAN), recognized for its suitability in the communication of intelligent sensors and actuators, and also capable of obtaining the location, speed and torque control commands of a motor and executing digital control functions irrespective of motor""s type and power consumption, transmitting feedback data.
In the conventional design and manufacturing of microprocessor based control module for driving motors being essential for factory automation system, a separate control module is designated for each motor according to its power consumption and its type. Most of the higher level interfaces for control modules are consisted of parallel ports or one to one serial ports suitable for central control.
Accordingly, the number of wiring between driving mechanism and control module increases substantially for an integrated control of a plurality of motors and subsequently causes some difficulties for the repair and maintenance of the control system.
Also, even if a bus type serial communication is possible between the higher-level interfaces of each control module type, many difficulties in the system control arise due to the differences between each of the protocols. For the motor control module including to above functions, often the large size of the control module impairs an effective use of available space.
The present invention is designed to overcome the above problems of prior arts. One object of the invention is to provide a motor control module based on the CAN which is capable of flexibly controlling various types of motors by distinguishing the essential DSP/CAN module and motor driving module for motor control and replacing only the programs for the essential DSP/CAN module and motor driving module according to their types and characteristics.
Another object is to provide a motor control module based on the CAN which is not only capable of installing an integrated distributed control system with simple attachment/detachment of the essential DSP/CAN module and motor driving module without the need to replace the power amplifier for the automation line comprising a plurality of motors, but also capable of significantly reducing the number of wiring and space wastage for the automation line, by implementing the essential DSP/CAN module and motor driving module in small size.
A further objective of the invention is to provide a motor control module based on the CAN which is capable of improving the cost savings and promoting the system openness for the PC based integrated motor control as well as simplifying the repair and maintenance, by adopting Controller Area Network which is the ISO11898 standard and has a rich PC interfaces as a higher level communication method for a motor control module.